Teammate Marcus Ambrose was second at 191.598 in qualifying for the Sunday night race.

Petty won a Sprint Cup-record 123 poles during his career.

Almirola, gearing up for his first series race at Charlotte, and Ambrose took advantage of cooler track conditions late in qualifying. Jimmie Johnson, who won last week's All-Star race, was third, followed by Greg Biffle and Clint Bowyer.

Kurt Busch will start at the back of the field after wrecking in qualifying.